NSW Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Mrs Lesley Williams, announced at the start of 2016 the inaugural (and annual) Aboriginal Student of the Year awards. The Aboriginal Student of the Year is an award recognising young people who demonstrate leadership within their school and local community.
This years NAIDOC Week theme: Songlines:The living narrative of our nation, celebrates the stories of achievement of Indigenous Australians so it is quite fitting that Manoa Ratabalouva, from St Agnes Catholic High School Rooty Hill was presented with the inaugural Aboriginal Student of the Year for the Mount Druitt electorate on the eve of NAIDOC Week.
On Friday Emeritus Mayor of Blacktown, Mr Charlie Lowles was on hand to present this award to Manoa at a whole school assembly on behalf of Mr Edmond Atalla, Member of Mount Druitt in the NSW Parliament.
As recognition of his achievements Manoa received a certificate and a gift voucher. The top students from the award nominations across NSW will head to Sydney in August to attend the Emerging Leaders Forum, where they will meet with Aboriginal, business and Government leaders.
St Agnes Catholic High School Principal, Mr Peter Regan said, “Manoa was a worthy recipient due to his commitment to the school community, his politeness, helpfulness, sincereness towards his peers and for generally being a respectful young man who always completes what is asked of him.”
“This award highlights the outstanding contributions that young students make within their community and I warmly congratulate Manoa on his win. Manoa has a positive influence on other students, and teammates, and an ability to guide his fellow peers to get involved in many different activities.”
“He is a diligent and mature student who is a strong role model for his fellow peers. This award is well deserved.” Mr Peter Regan said.
St Agnes Catholic High School Rooty Hill
www.stagnesrootyhill.catholic.edu.au
Latest News More news
21 Oct 2025
From Facebook
Today, our Year 12 Modern History class visited the Sydney Jewish Museum, where they had the privilege of hearing Holocaust Survivor Paul Drexler share his powerful and moving story. Students then explored the museumโs exhibits, deepening their understanding of the Holocaust and the importance of remembrance, empathy, and standing up against injustice.
21 Oct 2025
From Facebook
๐ ๐๐ข๐ง๐ค ๐๐ข๐๐๐จ๐ง ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ญ ๐๐ญ ๐๐ ๐ง๐๐ฌ ๐ Today our staff came together to celebrate ๐๐ข๐ง๐ค ๐๐ข๐๐๐จ๐ง ๐๐๐ฒ with a lovely morning tea! It was fantastic to see everyone wearing pink in support of such an important cause. Thanks to the generosity of our staff and community, we raised ๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ซ $๐,๐๐๐ to support breast cancer research and awareness. ๐๐ A huge thank you to Mrs Dass for organising the event, and to Mikayla Smith and her family, who have made beautiful pink ribbons for the whole school, an incredible effort theyโve continued for four years in a row! ๐ Weโd also like to thank Nina Shamoun and her family for baking a large pink cake for Ms Holland to cut on behalf of the staff, another wonderful tradition theyโve kept going for four years running. ๐ฐ๐
21 Oct 2025
From Facebook
A huge thank you to our amazing school community for taking the time to celebrate our teachers this World Teachersโ Day! Your thoughtful messages, kind words, and support mean so much and truly brighten our teachersโ day. Weโre so grateful for this wonderful community! ๐๐ https://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/portal/nesa/events/world-teachers-day-in-nsw
17 Oct 2025
From Facebook
๐ A big shoutout to our senior students, Arek, Sylvana, Sienna and Niyat, who recently volunteered with the ๐๐ข๐ง๐ง๐ข๐๐ฌ ๐๐๐ง ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฆ! They helped prepare food and travelled to Mount Druitt and Parramatta, serving around 50 people in one evening. It was a busy night filled with kindness, connection and service. These students truly showed the St Agnes values of compassion and dignity through their actions. We are proud of you! ๐๐
17 Oct 2025
From Facebook
๐๐จ๐๐ค๐ญ๐จ๐๐๐ซ โ ๐ ๐ซ๐ข๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐ญ๐ก ๐๐๐ญ๐จ๐๐๐ซ Get ready to kick goals for a great cause! On Friday 24th October, students and staff are invited to celebrate Socktober โ a fun way to support children in need around the world. This year, St Agnes is supporting communities in Zambia through Catholic Mission, helping provide education, healthcare, and hope to children and families in need. Everyone is encouraged to wear their craziest, brightest, and most colourful socks with their school uniform and bring a gold coin donation, or make a contribution through the QKR app. Letโs show our St Agnes spirit and make a difference for the people of Zambia โ one sock at a time!
16 Oct 2025
From Facebook
Well done to Annalyse, who has secured an early entry offer at Billy Blue College of Design. St Agnes students received so many early offers for their hard work over the past 2 years. We are proud of all of the students, keep sending your offers to stagnes@parra.catholic.edu.au so we can publicly recognise you!
15 Oct 2025
From Facebook
๐ข ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฉ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐๐๐ฎ๐ข๐ฅ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐ง๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฆ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ!๐๐ https://www.instagram.com/stagnesrootyhill_2766/ Unfortunately, we have lost access to our previous Instagram page, along with all our wonderful followers, alumni connections and shared memories. But weโre starting fresh! ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ฌ๐ ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐๐ฒ ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฐ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐ก๐๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ง๐๐ฌ, ๐๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฒ, ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐ญ ๐๐ ๐ง๐๐ฌ ๐๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ง๐ข. Letโs reconnect our amazing community and continue celebrating the spirit of St Agnes together. Thank you for your ongoing support!
15 Oct 2025
From Facebook
๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ข๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ฆ๐๐๐ฌ๐ฌ๐๐๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ง๐จ๐ฐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ง ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ฌ๐ ๐๐๐๐ง๐๐ฌ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ฎ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐๐๐๐. Blacktown City Council are looking for young people aged between 15 and 18 to represent the City in 2026. If successful, you will serve as Ambassador for a period of 12 months, representing the city at Citizenship Ceremonies and Civic Receptions, as well as representing the Youth as part of the Sister Cities and Youth Advisory Committees. So, if you are a young person who enjoys public speaking, meeting new people, helping your community and would like to represent the youth of Blacktown City, then this is the program for you! The program is a fun way to learn new skills and gain invaluable experience outside the schooling environment. Apply on the following link:- https://www.blacktown.nsw.gov.au/Community/Our-people/Children-and-young-people/Youth-Ambassador-Program
12 Oct 2025
From Facebook
St Agnes CHS returns for Term 4 this ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฌ๐๐๐ฒ! Weโre excited to welcome all students back for a fresh and energetic start to the term. Please arrive on time on Evans Road; the back entrance is only to be used after the first bell. Friendly reminder: ๐๐จ๐ง๐๐๐ฒ is a Staff Development Day โ no classes will be running. Letโs make Term 4 a great one!
01 Oct 2025
From Facebook
๐ Year 11 Ancient History Amazing Race! ๐ Today, Year 11 raced through the ancient world, connecting our classroom learning to real-life challenges! ๐๏ธโจ Students visited several โclue keeperโ stations, each tied to our units: Miss Brogan, the Librarian, showed how museums and libraries act as keepers of knowledge, challenging students to think about the treatment and display of human remains Mr Conte, Leader of PDHPE, tested their knowledge of Sparta, focusing on athleticism and the famous athletic festivals ๐โโ๏ธ๐๏ธ Miss Clark, Head of HSIE, guided them through Palmyra, exploring the legacy of Zenobia, the Queen of Palmyra ๐๐๏ธ The School Gates, standing strong like the fortifications of Troy, reminded students how cities protected themselves ๐ฐ At every stop, students solved clues, earned approvals, and brought history to life. The journey ended back in the classroom, but the teamwork, skills, and knowledge gained will last far longer! ๐ก๐ฅ